Q & A
by MisteriousKiller
Summary: Angel never thought he'd be able to love again. Not when he had nearly destroyed the world last time. But the unexpected happens. He finds someone else, Quinn. She isn't what you'd expect, she's much more...
1. Chapter 1

Q & A 1

He leaned against the wooden beam supporting the boardwalk above him. He stared out across the water feeling the sun on his eyes. He could see the water glittering in the mid-day sun. He longed for the time when he could just step out from the shadows and feel the heat of the sun on his pale flesh. But those days have long since passed. He longed for many things: the taste of food dancing across his tongue, to feel the fatigue of his muscles after a long intense workout, but he knew that if he tried to ingest anything it would just end up tasting like dirt.

He closed his eyes, sucking in a cool breath of oxygen not really something he needed anymore. He could taste the salt from the ocean on his lips. He wanted to spit it out but he knew it was only a sensation and not really a taste that was really there. He watched the woman standing at the water's edge burring her toes beneath the damp sand. The thin satin swim suit cover up she wore billowed out in the ocean breeze. Her hair cascaded down her back in long thick caramel colored waves. Her skin, as he knew, was soft and smooth like finely polish marble. He watched as the muscles in her legs and arms clenched as uncleaned as she moved.

He shifted, moving to rest against the other side of the same wooden pillar, getting a better view. He looked her over; his eyes took their time savoring every inch they took. He wished he could walk out and wrap his arms around her waist and rest his chin on the top of her head and inhale her warm scent. He inhaled once more imaging her musky vanilla aroma delightfully invading his nose. His thumb wound around the black metal wedding band claiming his ring finger. She wore it's mate. She was his, against all odds. Against all trials she was his. He glanced up catching her watching him. A small mischievous grin curling at the corners of her thin plush lips.

She turned taking small short strides toward him. She took her time. He could see the gracefulness of her strides. She was a beautiful huntress in search of prey. The muscles coiling beneath her skin, she could lunge at any moment. He smiled he was the lucky one. He was the one she hunted. "I come to beach to enjoy the sun and sand and I find a man with the face of an angel staring after me. Tell me are you taken?" She asked lifting her hand using the tips of her fingers to trail down the side of his face. A small smile spread across his lips. He lifted his left hand in front of her showing her the black band.

"I am." He spoke happily. She glanced to the side and sighed.

"Such a shame," she looked up again continuing, "the good ones are always taken." His arms reached out grabbing her around the waist in a powerful iron grip and yanked her into the shadows with him. He brushed the rogue strands of hair away from her neck and he ducked his head. His sharpened canines grazing the nape of her exposed vulnerable skin.

"A good one huh? Some would disagree." He argued. She panted lightly with the rapidness of her heart beat. In one slick fluid motion, she had him pinned against the same pillar he was resting against only moments ago. She felt the hardness of his body, like rock, as she pressed against him.

"Those some don't know you like I do." She whispered leaving a faint barely there kiss on his slightly parted lips.

From behind them they heard someone clear their throat. "It's bad enough that you are like this at the office, do you really have to do it out here too." The voice was whinny and belonged to the mean girl in high school. The one whom everyone hated but every girl wanted to be. He flicked his eyes away from the woman pressed against him.

"Cordelia, what is it?" His tone conveyed his annoyance. Cordelia took a short step forward and handed him a small slip of paper. He read it and looked up. "Can't the others handle this?" She shook her head.

"Connor?" He asked. Cordelia stayed silent. "Spike?" He asked.

"Angel." Finally she spoke her voice containing a hint of sadness. Angel went to continue the list. She cut him off. Her tone rising.

"Angel…its Buffy." She managed finally. Cordelia glanced over at the girl that was attached to one of Angel's arms and then back at Angel.

"Buffy?" He asked nearly whispering. Cordelia nodded.

"Yes. She's in trouble. There's something big on its way to SunnyDale. They have no way to fight it." She said somberly. Angel stole a glance to the side at his wife. She nodded.

"We should go Angel." Her tone was all but excited but she knew this was something he couldn't turn down.

Angel leaned across the door frame of their room arms folded across his chest watching as his wife hastily tossed clothes into a small black duffle bag. "You don't have to go you know." He offered. She paused after throwing in an extra pair of shirts for the both of them. She looked up at him.

"As much as I would like to coward out and not go because of how awkward this might be…For well all of us. I can't very well just leave you to fend for yourself." She moved to stand in front of him her arms folded in the same manner as his. She was quiet for a moment and took a deep breath before working enough courage to speak. "I know how much she meant...means…"

"Quinn." She put up a hand stopping him. He sat back on his heels and closed his mouth.

"I know how much she means to you. I know you love me, but I also know you still care a great deal for Buffy." She managed to say the name. She could feel tears welling up but she stopped them from doing much more than that. "As much as I want to be against it, I think Buffy and I should meet." She finished. Angel met her gaze.

"Are you sure that's what you want?" He asked.

"It's what's best." He managed zipping up the bag and tossing it to him.

The drive from LA to SunnyDale was long and drawn out due impart to the silence. Neither spoke but a few short sentences. Both were lost in their thoughts as to how this whole ordeal was about to work out. Cordelia wasn't much help by way of being able to tell what was coming or when it was going to come. They were pretty much left on their own. They pulled up in front of a small suburban house. "I think I should…" Angel began. Quinn nodded.

"Best to break it gently." She reached over and slid the ring off of his finger and closed his fingers around it. "Tell her when you're ready. I'll be around." She leaned over and kissed his cheek before he could say anything she was gone...

Quinn wandered aimlessly down the street a few blocks from where she had left Angel. She eventually found herself strutting into the SunnyDale cemetery. Rows and rows of head stones lined her walkway. A few of them were fresh. She felt an odd sense of calm wash over her stammering nerves. She felt the block of sharp wood in the waist band of her pants as she walked. This was something she was familiar with, something she was comfortable with. Behind her a twig snapped. She spun around, her eyes searching the darkness. Her ears strained as she listened. She inhaled. All she could smell was the strong stench of rotting flesh and the aroma of newly turned up grass and dirt. "You're not the slayer." A throaty voice called out behind her. She spun around again. A tall man in a brand new black suit that was dirty with the mud he had to climb up through covered him. He had been young when he died. His hair was dark and cut short to his head. It was gelled.

"Sorry to disappoint." She responded. She watched as his nostrils flared when he sucked in a breath of unneeded air.

"You don't smell human…but you are human…" His brow furrowed in frustration as he tried to concentrate. "What are you?" He asked taking a step toward her. She pulled the stake from her the waist band of her pants and twirled it in her palm.

"The person that is about to end your new beginning." She tossed the stake up into the air she spun on her back leg and kicked the stake sending it hurling toward him. Faster than he thought was possible he was a pile of dust. Quinn walked forward kneeling down she reached for the stake. _Well that was anticlimactic…_ She thought sadly. Before she got completely to her feet she was tackled from the side. The impact sent her sprawling to the ground. She looked up to see what had attacked her but they weren't lying on the ground beside her they were already on their feet standing above her a stake looming over the center of her chest.

"Little girls shouldn't wander alone at night, especially in the cemetery." With that she squatted thrusting the stake down. Quinn twirled her legs trapping one of the other girls and swept her feet from beneath her. Quinn flipped onto her feet and looked down. The girl was about her height. She wore a plain cotton t-shirt and dark pants. Her hair was short and blond.

"Hold on a second." Quinn said holding her hands out in a time out manner. The blond girl flipped to her feet looking like she was ready to lounge at any second. "I'm not what you think I am." She said. The other girl scoffed a small smile curling at the corner of her lips.

"Exactly, you vile creature of the night." She lunged throwing a series of punches and kicks. Quinn managed to block the flurry. This girl had strength she shouldn't have. She wasn't just a human. This must be the slayer. Quinn's eyes widened as realization washed over her. She tried to block the other girl's advances by going on the defensive end. Ducking and parring.

"You're the slayer." Quinn said. The girl looked at her with bright eyes.

"Duh." She responded.

"You're Buffy!" Quinn called out. Speaking her name gave the slayer pause.

"How do you know my name?"

"Oh no. You were supposed to be at home." Quinn stuttered. Buffy looked at her.

"Who are you? How do you know my name?" She asked again. Quinn sighed. This was not how it was supposed to have gone. Angel was the one that was supposed to have spoken to her.

"I came with Angel." Quinn spat out. Buffy lowered the stake.

"Angel?" She asked. Quinn nodded. "Angel is here?" She continued. Quinn saw what she thought was flash of pain in Buffy's eyes. But it was gone before she could completely analyze it. Buffy regained her ground and stood straight crossing her arms over her chest, stake gripped tightly in one of her hands. "What kind of demon are you?"

"I'm a half-breed." Quinn replied.

"Half what?"

Quinn sighed she was growing impatient. "I'll tell you later. Angel really wanted to talk to you." Quinn strode from the cemetery.

Angel sat on the couch across from the bubbly red headed witch. "So Cordy doesn't know what's coming just that its big and bad."

"That's pretty much the size of it. She did say that when it comes it is going to be must worse than the Master." Willows eyes widened.

"The Master is what killed..."

"Me." They both turned to see the blond haired slayer standing in the foyer. Angel rose to his feet raking his hair with his fingers.

"Buffy." His eyes flicked to the brunette standing behind him. Quinn moved around Buffy and stood next to Angel.

"Found her." She sighed taking a seat on the edge of the couch. Willow followed her as she went. Quinn leaned across the coffee table her hand extended. "I'm Quinn."

"Willow. I see you've met Buffy." Willow turned her eyes back to Buffy. Buffy's gaze was fixed on Angel and never wavered.

"We've…gotten acquainted." Quinn stood motioning to Willow. "I think we should let them have a second." Without a word Willow nodded and led them into the kitchen.

"Thank you." Quinn took the mug of hot tea. Willow took a long slow drag from her own mug. It was of the cheesy novelty type.

"You and Angel huh? What's that like?" Willow pried awkwardly. Quinn took a sip of her tea letting it slid down her throat warming it as it went before she spoke.

"Very interesting. There never is a boring day at the office. There is always something new about to cause havoc and destruction to the city." She paused and then looked around. "But I suppose that's nothing new to you here." She sighed. Willow gave a small laugh and smiled.

"Something new all the time." She agreed.

They stayed silent for a long time each standing at opposite ends of the living room. Angel could hear the clock ticking deafeningly in the other room. He could hear the murmurs of Quinn and Willow talking in the other room. If he concentrated he'd be able to understand what was being said, but he didn't want to put forth the effort. He heard muffled sounds of laughter. Buffy turned toward the kitchen. "Sounds like they are getting along." Buffy finally broke the silence. Angel looked over to her. "She didn't just _come_ with you did she. She _is_ with you." Buffy enunciated the words. Angel shoved off the wall.

"Look Buff, Quinn is a great girl. But that's not why we came." Angel started. Buffy looked at him. The way he said her name, it held so much affection. So much adoration.

"You love her?" Buffy asked. For not being able to feel anything he felt _everything._ Angel slipped his hand into his pocket and fished out the small band. He looked up at Buffy and slipped the band onto his finger.

"Yes." Buffy looked to the side, the same pain that Quinn thought she had seen earlier came to rest on the surface of her eyes.

"Why did you come?" She finally asked after taking a moment to collect herself. She was happy for him. She wanted to be selfish but she couldn't think that just because she couldn't have him no one else could. He deserved better than that. But it still hurt.

"Cordelia saw you were in trouble."

"I can take care of myself." Angel nodded.

"I know you can, but whatever it was she saw is worse than the Master."

"I can handle it." Buffy spoke stubbornly.

"Buffy, the Master killed you." Buffy met his gaze.

"I know."


	2. Chapter 2

Q & A 2

Quinn sat on the edge of the king sized bed. She was alone, which was probably the better option. She knew that if Angel had been in the room it would have been silent anyways. She didn't want to have to tolerate the silent awkwardness. She rifled through the bag and pulled out her phone cord. She punched in a series of numbers and heard the click of the other end picking up. "Hey dad."

"How'd things go?" The other line asked.

"I can see why you liked her so much." She sighed it was an odd relationship they all shared. "She's quite something."

"You know how Angel feels about you, love." Even though she couldn't see his face, she could hear the sneer that was on his face. Her father didn't love Angel merely tolerated him.  
"I know. But I also know he loves her too." She could hear the sadness in her own voice and it was kind of depressing.

"Do you want me to come to SunnyDale?" He offered. Her eyes widened.

"No. No no. That's ok I'll be fine." She could imagine Buffy was having enough trouble with the whole Angel/Quinn situation. She might be the slayer, but who knows how she would handle learning who Quinn's father is. She buried her head in her hands _my life is like a soap opera._ _My dad "dated" the slayer. My husband "dated" the slayer. But she made him turn evil and then he turned back. My mother tried to kill this whole town on multiple occasions._

"Quinn?" She heard the voice in her ear.

"Sorry." She responded shaking her head trying to clear it. "No, dad. I'll be fine." She heard someone clear their throat she turned to see Buffy standing in the door way. "hey dad I gotta go. I'll see you later." She clicked off the phone and placed it in the center of the bed side table.

"Can I come in." Quinn cracked a smile.

"It's your room." She laughed. Buffy smiled slightly moving to sit on the far end of the bed.

"I take it you know about me and Angel?" She asked. Quinn nodded.

"Yes. I know what it's like to lose someone you love and then have to watch them move on with someone else. Perhaps not to your extent…but."

"Got it." She spoke motioning her hands in an _I got it_ type fashion. "I apologize for trying to kill you earlier." Buffy continued. Quinn cracked a smile.

"Don't mention it."

"So how did you guys meet exactly?" Quinn could tell she felt awkward asking whether it was from her not wanting to ask the question or from not really caring what the answer was, she wasn't sure. Either way the question surprised her in fact the whole encounter was a shock.

"Um…We met shortly after he moved to LA...He actually tried to kill me."

She stayed close to the edge of the building staying as far from the road as possible. She drew as little attention to herself as possible. It was LA she was one of 30,000 brunettes in the city. She was a no one and she wanted to keep it that way. The fall air stirred blowing cold air down the back of her shirt. She shivered drawing her sweater tighter to herself. With as many people that were bustling about trying to get from one end of the busy street to the other she managed to keep an eye on the person she was tailing and the person tailing that person. She saw the one duck behind one of the retail shops and a few seconds later the other ducked behind going into the same alley. She sped up her pace a little and ducked into the alley. She could hear shouting the further as she delved further. "Where is it?" The male that had been following her asked shoving her up against one of the brick walls pinning her arms.

"I don't know where it is." She cried. The man back handed her, blood pooled and ran down her chin from the cut on her lip. When she turned back the man's appearance had changed. His eyes were yellow around the pupil his face from his cheeks up had contorted his canines enlarged. He looked at her like a dog might a steak.

"Wanna try that again?" He asked drawing nearer to her throat. Tears sprang from her eyes and she began to cry.

"Please! I don't know anything!" She cried she felt twin pricks on the side of her neck.

"Hey!" The shout came from behind them. The creature looked up. "She said she doesn't know anything." The voice drew nearer a figure materialized from the dark. It scoffed.

"Get outta here." He spoke ducking his head back into the crook of the girl's neck. Whimpers could be heard over the slushing noise the creature made as it sucked the life force from the woman. She surged forward and with incredible strength threw the thing of the night off.

"Run…Go now!" She yelled to the girl. She heard the panicked footsteps of the woman running as far away as she could as fast as her trembling legs could carry her. She turned back to the creature…the vampire. "Where were we?" She asked rhetorically. The vampire lunged forward she stepped to the side kicking out landing a nice solid blow to his stomach she brought her elbow down with immense speed down on the back of his neck dropping him onto his face. She stood over him pulling a pointed wooden stake from the waist band of her pants and punched it through his ribs into his heart. He turned to dust immediately she was now standing over a pile of ash. She turned a wary eye behind her making sure no one had witnessed the series of events that had just transpired.

He'd had the hopes of saving another life tonight but as he watched from the cover of a dark alley he saw that someone had beaten him to it. He watched the woman fight, she was quick and she was strong. She wasn't human. And she wasn't a slayer either. No she was something else entirely. He watched her look up and scan the area until finally she disappeared into the surrounding darkness. Even from the distance he was away he could see that she matched the description of the girl Cordelia had seen in her vison. He walked picking up on the girls trail a few blocks away kicking a man onto the sidewalk from inside a bar. She leaned down to pick him up and drag him into the alley way behind the highly frequented bar. He could hear there clear conversation as he approached. "Please…I haven't done anything!" The man shouted. The girl chuckled. He heard the smack as her fist collided with his face knocking him back into the brick wall behind him. She twisted and kicked him smacking him into the wall. The guy folded to the ground she loomed over him. Before she could strike one more blow he charged taking her to the ground. They both popped up from the ground and squared off.

"Who the hell are you?" She asked watching him.

"I'm Angel I don't like bullies." He lunged forward kicking through her like he would if she were a door. With ease she glided to the side out of the way. She back handed the side of his face he caught her arm and drove her into the wall. She walked up the wall and flipped around behind him. Front kicking him forcing him into the hard surface. She looked passed Angel the guy she had tracked was gone. She looked back to Angel, a stake slipped down the sleeve of his jacket. She charged at him throwing a series of combinations. Angel blocked a few of them but a few of them connected. A cut emerged on his lip. His eyes changed from their warm brown to the glowing yellow and his canines enlarged.

"Vampire, you have no idea what you just did." She snarled.

"Interrupted your dinner have I?" He tilted his head.

"He was a demon, not a person!" She yelled. "You are dealing with things far greater than you understand." She growled.

"Yeah, that greater thing is what sent me here." Angel answered.

Cordelia looked up from where she sat behind the desk. "Did you find…" Seeing the person materialize behind him her eyes widened. "Hey! That's the girl. You brought her here? Why isn't she all like, puff?" She made a motion with her hands mocking an explosion.

"I think there was a misunderstanding. The guy you saw in your vision was a demon not a human she was mugging." Angel explained. Cordelia put her hands in her back pockets and looked down.

"Oh…oops." She sighed. She looked back up. "So who are you?"

"Quinn." Cordelia took in the bruises and small cuts over her boss's face.

"How did you beat up Angel?" Angel shot her a look.

"I'm a little more than meets the eye." Quinn responded.

"What are you exactly?"

"Cordelia." Angel warned like a parent might who might to a child that was being rude.

"I was born to vampires. Somehow makes me a hybrid. I have human vampire qualities." Cordelia looked at Angel.

"How does that work?" He looked away and shrugged.

"What is it you are looking for?" Angel asked taking attention away from Cordelia's interrogation. Cordy glared at him and went back behind the desk taking a seat. Angel leaned against the file cabinet waiting for a reply. Quinn moved across the room from Angel and leaned casually against the short book shelf.

"Cymophane." She replied. Cordelia looked at her, her mouth hung open in question.

"It's a gem, also called cat's eye." Someone else who Quinn hadn't noticed before answered. He wore thinly framed glasses worn blue jeans and a blue colored shirt. He had a thick English accent.

"What's so important about the stone thing?" Cordelia asked.

"Gem. It gives the person that possesses it supernatural abilities." He corrected. Quinn nodded in agreement. "Wesley Wyndam-Pryce." He extended his hand to her.

"Quinn." She replied grasping his hand and shaking it.

"Why are you looking for it?" Angel continued. She took her eyes off Westley and onto Angel. Her lips curled into a small playful smile.

"There are more dangerous people than me looking for it." She replied.

"Angel, if a demon were to recover this gem it would make them nearly invincible. No one know what abilities it truly gives." Westley warned.

She watched Buffy as she spoke trying to gauge her. "Wow, and I thought our first meeting was interesting." She responded sarcastically. Buffy popped up from where she sat on the edge of the bed and walked toward the door stopping and turned. A look of puzzlement on her face, Quinn looked at her expectantly. "You were talking to your dad." She said. Quinn nodded. "He seems like he cares. Does he know about you?" Buffy asked. Unbeknownst to Buffy it was kind of an awkward conversation. Quinn laughed nervously.

"He's very well informed.." She smiled. Buffy nodded.

"Cool." She responded. As Quinn watched her she could see that there was something else Buffy wanted to ask.

"No, I don't have to drink blood to survive. I can eat normal food it just tastes really super bland. Like cardboard." Buffy's eyes widened.

"I didn't mean..." Quinn cut her off.

"It's ok." She laughed.

"Sunlight?"

"I won't burst into flames, but it's very uncomfortable. I tend to avoid sunlight if it can be helped." Buffy nodded.

"Night." Buffy turned and disappeared into the hall. Quinn settled into bed pulling the comforter to her neck she turned over and pulled the chain hanging from the lamp. The room went dark. A few moments later she felt the bed shake lightly and a tug on the comforter.

"I think she likes you." He whispered in her ear. She rolled over to see Angel's face inches from hers. In the darkness she could see his warm brown eyes and his spike dark brown hair.

"She can only try to kill me so many times in a day. Let's see how tomorrow plays out." Quinn whispered sarcastically in response. She could hear Angel chuckle.


	3. Chapter 3

Q & A 3

 _Flashback_

"And the demon you were tracking was going to tell you where the cat's eye is hidden?" Wesley asked from where he was perched on the corner of Cordelia's desk. Quinn shot a set blue daggers in the direction of Angel.

"He would have if I hadn't been so rudely interrupted by your boss over there." She pointed her thumb in the direction of the tall dark brooding vampire in the shadowed corner of his office. Cordelia shyly raised a finger drawing Quinn's attention.

"That may have been my fault." She laughed nervously. "I don't exactly have control over these visions, perception is…sometimes wrong." Her explanation didn't make the whole situation any better.

"Do you know what type of demon he was? Perhaps we could find him." Wesley asked.

"He's not a vampire, but he might as well be. There's a watering hole he likes to frequent in town." With no other description not that the one she gave was of any help in looking up the demon, she walked out of the office gliding down a flight of stairs and onto the street. Angel materialized beside her. She glanced to the side. "What are you doing?" She asked irritation scratching her throat.

"I'm not letting you walk into a demon frequented bar alone." He responded. How…protective of him. She sighed angrily he was going to slow her down.

"Wouldn't be the first time." She responded cutting the corner without missing a stride he was there.

"Cordelia had a vison and it brought me to you. Meaning if I wasn't meant to kill you I am meant to save you from something. You aren't going into that bar alone." She figured her efforts would be futile should she choose to continue arguing. She got the sense once he made up his mind there was no swaying it. She stepped up on the small wooden porch of the bar hearing it creak and split beneath her weight. _Mmm wonderful…_ She pulled open the door and strode in the glares from various demons did nothing to break her stride towards the bar. Demon bar human bar it didn't matter they were all pretty much the same. There was thick layer of smoke clinging to the air. The lights were turned down and there was a game of pool going on in the far back corner. Quinn could hear the complaints of one of the players. _Sucker._ She knew he was being hustled.

"You know you aren't supposed to be in here." The bar tender leaned across the table warning. He skin was quite oily his pores secreted a copious amount of it. She wondered how much of that oil ended up in a demon margarita. Quinn shrugged her shoulders reaching across the bar gripping the bar tender by the back of his neck and slammed his "Its cozy in here I think I might stay." She was bent over the bar inches from his face.

"Come on Quinn. I don't want any trouble." He had his palms up in a white flag manner. Quinn pursed her lips.

"Ohh poor buddy." She cooed. "Tell me what I want and I'll leave peacefully…" She paused. "Maybe." She continued. Quinn felt a hand on her shoulder she turned her head but didn't lesson her grip on the bar tender. It wasn't Angel.

"I wouldn't do that." Angel warned from behind them. The demon laughed and looked around there was easily ten others in the bar. 

"Really? Seems to me odds are in our favor." He laughed. The pressure on her shoulder increased. She slammed the bar tender into the bar again and tossed him away. He slammed into the wall behind him breaking shelves before falling to the ground. A hail of liquor bottles accompanying him. She turned to fight the demon that had just been touching her she realized he was no longer next to her but was on the ground several feet away with Angel standing over him throwing punches to the guys face. The others that were in the bar surged forward throwing blows at Quinn. She dodged and offensively struck back. She could see Angel in her peripheral vision trading blows with a demon with horns sticking out of each side of his head.

"All I'm tryin to do is find Tyrone. You seen him?" Quinn asking ducking underneath a roundhouse. A sidekick caught her in the ribs she fell back a few steps. That would be a very large unattractive bruise for the next few days. The ones stalking toward her sneered.

"Such a pitty. A hybrid accepted by no one. Not even us. What's worse is being the child of a once revered vampire who was maimed by the one person he was supposed to kill." Quinn's lips turned up in a snarl. She drew the twin daggers from her boots and she danced. Twirling and dodging like a whirlwind. 

"Everyone has an off day." She replied sticking one of the daggers into the chest of a demon that was green and reptile looking. He fell of her blade and onto the floor. Others were coiled to lunge seconds away when a shot rang out through the confined space. Everyone looked up to see the bar tender holding a shot gun the end of the barrel smoking.

"Enough!" He yelled out. "You leave and I'll tell you what you want." Quinn nodded holding her hands up palms out. "Tyrone has a place a few miles outside of LA called the Flats. He doesn't go to many places you'll most likely find him there." He waved the barrel of the shot gun motioning toward the door. Quinn didn't need any further hints she turned and disappeared outside. Outside she tore a pieces of cloth from the bottom of her shirt and used it to dab the cut on her lip that decided to start bleeding. Thankfully she wasn't prone to bleeding a lot.

"What were they saying about the man who sired you?" Angel asked turning a curious eye towards her. She shrugged.

"He used to be a bad ass vamp that killed two slayers and went for a third but didn't kill her." She said.

"Two slayers huh." Angel spoke. He was beginning to piece together part of Quinn's history and he hoped the pieces that he had were not the correct ones. "What's his name?" He asked. "Maybe I know him."

"I doubt it, he's pretty old." She replied. "He was known by something else back home but he goes by Spike now." She went on trudging through a puddle of rain water. She didn't notice when Angel tripped up.

"Hmmm." He breathed out opening the car door of his Oldsmobile and climbed in she was already seated. The drove outside the city of Los Angeles happening onto a rundown complex the bartender had named as the Flats. He pulled over and parked on the curb. They walked up onto the side walk and strode into the building. The receptionist there looked up. _It's a run-down complex what is there a needed for…_ The question went unanswered. "Excuse me, we are looking for Tyrone." Angel smiled leaning on the counter probably not something he should have done. No telling what kind of stuff was dried on there.

"I'm sorry, we have a certain clientele." She said looking Angel over. He nodded and looked aside.

"Ah, something like this then?" His eyes glowed yellow and his canines were enlarged. The woman's eyes widened and she shrank back. She lifted her hand and pointed to one of the doors across from the desk. "That's what I thought." He turned away. The door opened and the demon that Quinn had been speaking with in an alley earlier stepped out and looked up. Angel shoved him back into the room. "Going out?" He asked.

"I don't know you!" He yelled receding back into the apartment. Quinn stepped around him into the light of the room. His head jerked in her direction. "You!" He pointed. Quinn nodded folding her hands in front of her.

"Me." She answered. "We never got to finish what we started earlier today." She spoke backing him into a corner. "I want the cat's eye where is it?" She asked.

"Please. I don't know." He put his hands up defensively. She jumped and front kicked him into the rear wall. "Please you don't know what it is you're asking for. They'll kill me if I tell anyone." Quinn leaned in her face a couple of inches from his.

"And you think we won't?" She whispered softly into his ear.

"Please. You don't have any idea what it does to the person who has it." He whimpered.

"Who says we want to use it?" Quinn spoke. The demon looked at her with a wary eye.

"What do you want it for?" He asked. Angel moved in ducking his head on the other side whispering into his other ear.

"We're looking to destroy it." He answered. The demon ducked out from between them looking at them as if they had lost their minds.

"Destroy it? Do you know what the cat's eye can do?" He asked his voice cracking. Both of the others nodded.

"Yes. We know what it's capable of that's why we are looking for it." Angel stepped forward.

"It's not going to be easy to get to…" He began. Angel turned a cold eye toward him. "Ok, ok it's being guarded by a demon they call Nazari. He's down in the sewers behind Clark's Restaurant you can gain access through the mantel in the alley behind." Angel and Quinn both unhanded him and turned. "Be wary of the gem. It enhances powers you already possess." With that they disappeared outside onto the street. Quinn shrugged her shoulders trying to rid herself of the hot tingling sensation felt down her spin. Angel watched her from his side of the car.

"You ok?" He asked.

"Sun is about to rise." She answered. They got into the car and drove back to the office. Not ten minutes after they walked into the office the sun started rising.

"Cutting it awfully close don't you think?" Cordelia asked standing next to a coffee maker brewing yesterday's grounds.

"I'll be more careful next time mom. I promise." Quinn could hear the thick sarcasm. Across the room there was a chuckle she turned her head seeing Westley.

"You get incinerated I don't get paid." She explained simply.

"What were you able to find out?" He asked.

"The demon Quinn was tracking said that it can be found in the sewer behind Clark's and is being guarded by something called Nazari." Behind them she heard Westley murmuring to himself and flipping sporadically through his backs.

"What's the plan?" Cordelia asked taking a sip of the old coffee.

"We're going to wait for tomorrow's nightfall." Angel stepped into the elevator shutting the door behind and descended below into his small neat apartment. Cordelia looked at Westley who was noise deep in a pile of musty old books.

"So..." Quinn turned away and descended down in into the apartment via the stairs. "Have you noticed she acts a lot like Angel?" Cordelia said.

"Hmm." Westley responded.

"She's very…broody." She answered.

Angel looked up to see Quinn leaning against the wall at the bottom of the steps his fingers paused where they were on his shirt button midway down his shirt. "Something wrong?" Angel asked. She fiddled for a second.

"You have anything to drink?" She asked. He walked over to the fridge and yanked it open. Packets of O+ were lying on the first shelf. He took one and squeezed it into a glass handing it to her.

"I hope you weren't looking for a soda." He took a seat in one of the dining room chairs in the middle of his small kitchen. He watched her as she took the glass looking for any type of reactions. He got none even as she took the first sip. Her nose didn't crinkle. Her eyes didn't twitch. She curled her wrist the glass resting against her shoulder. She stood allowing the cool blood coat her tongue and caress her throat as it went. It would have gone down smoother if it were fresh. But she wasn't going to complain.

"About earlier…" He began. She waved him off with a small smile.

"You didn't know."

"Does that taste ok?" he asked.

"Better than a bag of nacho cheese Doritos." She took another swig. He nodded sitting back in his seat folding his arms across his chest. "I…" She cleared her throat. He looked up at her expectantly. "Um…"

"Dad!" Angel's eyes shot toward the stairs where his son was pounding down them his long brown hair bouncing around as he went.

"Conor." Angel acknowledged his eyes flicking momentarily to where Quinn stood awkwardly off to the side. "Quinn this is my son Connor, Connor this is Quinn. She's like you." Angel explained. The kid looked over to Quinn and waved.

"Cool. Hi. Kind of thought I was the only one." He continued. She smiled slightly.

"So did I." Her entire existence was impossible. She didn't understand how she was here and yet here she was and here Connor was. Another impossibility come to life. Her mind went from the compact neurological organ that it was to a tangled mess of cooked spaghetti. Connor motioned toward the stairs with an impatient temperament.

"I found a nest of vamps a few blocks from here and they're getting ready to hunt." He bounded toward the stairs and disappeared expecting that his father and Quinn would follow. Angel had put a pause to the advances of the others. Westley adjusted the black wired glasses sitting on the bride of his nose.

"No I suppose with the three of you, you won't need the extra man power." He said almost sadly. "All's well I must research further the cats eye. Do be careful." With that he turned and took up his previous position behind the desk in the decently sized office. Needing nothing further Angel turned walking out into the just setting sun. Connor pulled ahead leading the way on foot.

"From what I was able to see there were at least a dozen." A small smile crept at the corners of Quinn's mouth. _Not at all worrisome…just enough to break a light sweat._ Quinn inhaled a deep sweet cool breath of anticipation and her eyes widened as the familiar sensation of a premonition claimed her body and a vision erupted in her mind.

"Stop!" Quinn yelled surging forward Connor's foot hovered mere inches away from the threshold of the vampires nest. Connor turned back a look of puzzlement wrinkling his smooth porcelain features.

"Look." Angel pointed, they all look down to see where Conor's foot hung a few inches over a thin gray wire. Had Conor been anything but what he was his foot would have landed on that wire and they would all be thrown yards away in an explosion. At either side of the door attached to the wires were hand grenades the wires looped around the clips. Any pressure to the wire would pull the clips and detonate the grenades. Conor stepped over the wire treading deeper inside the nest. There were no bright colors noting that made the place feel lively. Everything was in tatters. The carpet was holy and fraught with dirt and dried blood in some areas. The furniture from what Quinn could tell used to be cotton with a pin stripe pattern. She couldn't come up with any other word but dirty.

"They aren't here they've already moved out." Conor yelled from one of the back rooms. That was obviously apparent with the un normal silence. "They haven't been gone long." With that he disappeared out the back. With a shrug she departed following after Conor. She found him a few moments later but he wasn't alone. On all sides were vampires teeth bared snarling. Their eyes flicked from Conor to where Quinn stood her arms crossed toes tapping.

"I'd get out of here missy. We want the boy." One of them growled. She turned her head toward them with a sneer of her own. She could feel her canines enlarge as she phased. Their mouths dropped. "What are you?" They asked.

"A vampire, just prettier than the rest of you." Wasting no more time she lunged taking one out at the knees. In the seconds that followed as they fell through the air she pulled a stake from the waistband of her pants and pierced the heart of the vamp beneath her. With an expression of shock and then pain he puffed and dust swirled around in the air.

"I can handle this." Connor whispered as she was backed up next to him. She rolled her eyes.

"Oh I'm sure you can. But as seeing as I'm here best not to horde the work." Beyond the six in front of them she saw Angel battling with his own four. One of them looked toward her.

"Your physical appearance may be different but you are one of us. Why do you fight your own?" She doubted they really cared either way.

"Well you see I really don't like you killing my friends. And I have a soul. Something I'm afraid you don't have." She responded striking forward and back handing him across the face. With that signal Conor moved forward in a fray of punches and sidekicks driving the demons back. Quinn tossed her stake and it landed in Connor's hand a moment before he plunged into the chest cavity of another vampire. A few feet away Quinn spotted a wood pallet next to a serve all dumpster. She spun round housing the nearest vamp in the side of the face. She dove for the crate one of them followed her and as she came to her feet she broke off one of the pieces of wood and the unsuspecting vamp impaled himself. Quinn stood watching as two vampires approached Connor from either side Quinn was about to launch herself when Conor threw his arms stakes sprang out from the sleeves of his shirt and punched the vampire in the chest both of them were reduced to smoldering piles of ash as his feet. Quinn smiled slightly.

"I need to get one of those, that's pretty sweet." Quinn commented as she approached Connor.

"They're Angel's." Speaking of him the both turned their heads to see one of the last ones sitting atop Angel a stake between them. Being only a few feet away Quinn looked at the stake Conor held in his hand.

"Can I see that?" He handed it to her she tossed it up in the air and caught it by the pointy end and chucked it , like a dart embedding into a dart board, the stake entered the vamp between two ribs puncturing the heart. Some of the ash blew away in the wind some of it settled on Angel.


	4. Chapter 4

Q & A 4

Quinn sank into the cushion of the well-furnished chair she sat in her head held up by the palms of her hands. Cordelia looked up from where her face had been buried in a Hollywood celebs magazine she touched the tip of her finger to her tongue and turned the page. Hearing a sigh from across the desk she sat at she looked up again. "Are you bored or something? Nothing for you to go kill?" The question was laced with annoyance. Quinn perked up.

"Angel took Connor and Gunn they didn't need me to go with them." She lazily rose to her feet and walked the few feet to the desk and sat on the far left corner. Cordelia yanked the magazine from underneath Quinn and moved off to the side a few inches.

"Uh huh and that's why you're over there making the sounds of a depressed person?" She asked.

"I'm not depressed…I'm might be a little flustered." Cordelia leaned forward slightly and clasped her hands together.

"Not that I care. But I'll humor you. Why are you flustered?" She asked.

"Angel." Cordelia closed the magazine and slid it off to the side.

"Oh no no no. You need to take your Angel frustration and throw it away because that ain't happening…EVER."

"Why?" Cordelia came around from behind the wide oak desk coated with a nice shiny coat of polish to sit on the rounded corner. No one wanted the boss man impaling himself on his own desk. Cordelia crossed her arms and leaned toward Quinn like she was about to spread the latest gossip on the hottest celeb in town. Which in a way she kind of was only it wasn't the latest and greatest or on the hottest celeb… _Or maybe…_ Cordelia shook her head out of completing the train of thought that it was currently on.

"Because he had a girlfriend once it made him super happy and he became the vampire no one likes and everyone wants to kill. Not happening."

"Uh huh." Feeling a sudden gust of air Quinn turned to see Angel strutting through the double wood doors closing behind him his black blazer tautly pulled across his broad muscular shoulders. Cordelia caught her staring.

"Psst. NOT HAPPENING!" She growled. Angel looked to her setting the bloodied axe on the desk.

"Hey, I just cleaned there!" Cordelia complained. Angel lifted an eyebrow and looked over to the Hollywood Illustrated sitting on the far corner.

"With the magazine?" He asked.

"Ok, maybe I was just…" Cordelia stopped midsentence she took her eyes off Angel to stare off into the empty space between them or at least her own personal metal screening of the latest and greatest gruesome death scene.

"What is it Cordelia, what do you see?" Wesley came behind them a book, unsurprisingly in hand.

"There's blood. So much blood…They're all dead she's the only one left." Cordelia stood and strode away from the corner of the desk where she had been perched. She turned around to meet Wesley's question.

"Where?" He asked.

"Her house it's outside of town its. A community called Summit."

"Good Cordy. You did well." Wesley placed a hand on her shoulder and looked at the man power available. He had two important quests he needed to conquer. "Gunn go with Angel find the girl. Conor and I will go after the gem. What did the demon look like so we can look up how to dispatch it."

"There wasn't one."

"What do you mean there wasn't one? He was invisible?" Wesley pressed.

"No as in it was just the girl and the dead people I didn't see anyone else. Wesley you have to go it's going to happen soon." The sense of urgency was apparent. Quinn crossed her arms where she stood.

"What do you want me to do?" She asked irritated a little herself.

"Stay here with Cordelia." She didn't even get the chance to protest because they were all walking out the door when she opened her mouth to argue. She went and sat on the desk where Cordelia was resting. She crossed her arms and huffed glaring at the doors that had just closed.

"Why am I being sidelined? What did I do? Was I not supposed to slay those vampires? Do I smell? What?" She questioned lifting her arm to her nose. No she didn't smell. Cordelia looked up. "I came here for the gem. I don't need any of you." She pushed off the desk and strode threw the doors. Wesley wasn't her boss she could do what she wanted. She questioned why she had even stayed as long as she had.

Angel steered his car into the Summit housing addition. Just outside the city actually meant fifty miles outside the city. Feeling a little over whelmed Gun looked from one row of houses to the next. "How are we supposed to find the right one? There has to be like sixty-five houses here." He gripped the battle axe resting in his lap tightly.

"Look for anything out of the ordinary. There's got to be something that doesn't fit." Angel answered. Gun turned his head.

"That's real helpful." They drove for fifteen minutes looking for something anything that could be classified as unusual. "Do you see anything?"

"Nothing." Angel scanned from side to side.

"What do you think we're dealing with?" Gunn inquired.

"Not sure."

"Awesome. Nothing like fighting blind." Gunn glanced to the side and blew out a breath of frustration. He punched Angel in the arm. "Hey, hey over there." He pointed to a house across the street. "Would that be classified as unusual?" There was a rusted out car with duct tape pulled tautly over one of the broken windows. The house at which it was parked was high quality real state something an overly compensated actor might call his home away from home a place to take his mistress so the wife doesn't find out.

"That could be categorized as such." Angel pulled over to the side and cut the engine. Needing no instruction Gun led the way silently approaching the side of the house. There was a small window on the side of the house at least five feet off the ground. Standing off to the side Gunn peered inside. It was the kitchen. There was no one inside it was dark and hard to see anything else other than the white refrigerator and the silver sink.

"Clean here." He whispered to Angel who was peering into another window half a dozen feet away.

"Clear." Angel called back disappearing around the back of the house. Gunn turned the corner in time to see Angel's shadow enter the house through an open second story window.

"I'll just walk in through the front door then." He spun around on his heel making strides back toward the front door. He grabbed hold of the door and turned the knob only to find it was locked. He pulled out a kit from his jacket and lowered himself so that he could see the knob he pulled out a needle like tool and put it into the lock just as he was about to Jimmie the lock the knob turned. Gunn looked up to see Angel's pale face illuminated in the darkness.

"What are you doing?"

"Tryin' to break in." Gunn rose to his feet and entered the house taking a second he eyed Angel suspiciously raising a finger to point. "Wait, if you are in here that means…" Angel cut him off.

"No one's lived here for a while. House is pretty much empty." Gunn stepped further into the house taking a second to look around for himself. Angel was right the house was pretty much a ghost town. There was a dresser just inside the door but there was nothing but a thin layer of dust covering it. There was a coffee table in the living room but there was nothing on it except for dust bunnies.

"Why would Cordelia send us to an empty house?" Gunn questioned. The second the last word was spoken a loud shrill scream rang throughout breaking the silence in the house. The sound bounced off the walls nearly deafening them. They took off running toward the sound coming upon a door in the kitchen. Angel open the door motioning for Gun to go first. "Nuh uh I don't think so. You're the unkillable one you first." Gunn motioned for him to walk down into the deep dark scariness of the basement.

"Baby." Angel whispered trudging into the basement his axe ready in hand. What met Angel at the bottom of the steps he wasn't prepared for. A young woman barely out of her twenties sat in the middle of the room with a shot gun beneath her chin her finger hoovering over the trigger. "Hey, hey what's wrong?" Mascara was smeared down her face from her crying. 

"They're dead!" She cried. "They're all dead!" She screamed. Angel slowly handed his axe back to Gun who was standing behind him. He shuffled forward silently.

"Who's all dead?" He asked. She looked at him.

"My family, they're all right here can't you see them!" She looked around the room. "There's so much blood. I didn't know there would be so much blood." She cried harder now. Angel moved closer kneeling before the girl.

"There's no one here but us." He said softly.

"You lie! They're all here, they're all dead." She cried again.

"No one else is here. Why don't you give me the shot gun? Talk to me." He repeated reaching for the shot gun. She jerked away jumping to her feet. Angel could feel the fear rolling off her in waves. _Fear of what?_

"There's nothing here, what is she afraid of?" Gunn whispered behind them.

"She's afraid of her family dying, of being the only one left. Something is showing it to her." He turned back to her. "Jada, what you are seeing isn't real. Your family isn't here. I know it feels like it's real but it isn't. Hand me the gun focus on me. Listen to me no one else." He kept talking low and smooth. She looked at him and slowly she handed over the gun. Her eyes fluttered as she looked around wildly. She saw Angel and Gun and backed up.

"Who, who are you? Where am I? My family?"

"Why did you bench Quinn, we could have used the extra muscle." Connor asked sludging through a puddle of sewer water.

"I don't feel as though she's gained our trust quite yet." Connor felt no weight in the words they had let people tag along who they knew weren't trust worthy and ended up proving so.

"Ok, what's so important about this gem? I get that it enhances powers." He asked following closely after Wesley looking down T intersections in the tunnel for anything that was worthy of a beat down. To his sadness there hadn't been anything so far. To Wesley that just meant they weren't close enough.

"It enhances the powers a person may possess naturally, abilities such as strength, immunity, perception, empathy, etc. This makes it extremely unpredictable and thus dangerous. Especially if it ends up in the hands of someone who already possesses certain supernatural abilities." He cut to the side down one of the intersections the dark dank tunnels grew lighter the further they emerged and not because of the daylight. "I don't know how many demons will be guarding the gem however a positive is that there is only one specific type of demon charged with the duty so they all are killed in the same manner."

"Which is?" Connor asked.

"I'll let you know when I identify the type of demon." Connor heaved a loud sigh. After a few quiet footfalls Wesley haulted him after looking around the corner of the last turn. The turn dropped off deeper into the underground. Wesley caught sight of the demons milling around standing guard. He sighed if Connor wasn't able to hold them off long enough to do what needed to be done they were all in a world of hurt. Perhaps he shouldn't have benched Quinn.

"What?" Connor asked.

"We're here. The gem is being guarded by vampires known as Turok-Han." Connor stepped forward far more eagerly than he should be. Wesley heeded him.

"They're vampires I already know how to kill them." He answered simply. Wesley shook his head.

"True, but they aren't your standard garden variety vampires. They are older, stronger, and denser than the ones you have faced." Before Wesley could make sure that his warning had gotten across Connor jumped into the hole starting the party. Wesley emerged into the hole quietly hearing the hisses of the Turok-Han as Connor drew their attention away from him. He only hoped that his plan didn't end up in their untimely demises. Sticking as close to the shadows as possible Wesley made his way to the center of the layer. The gem glittered refracting light all over the dank underground. Wesley found himself in awe the cat's eye gem was beautiful. As he knelt closer he only realized the light was coming from itself because there was no light to refract in the darkness of the hole they had plunged themselves in. Wesley looked over in time to see Connor being backhanded across the face by one of the old ones. The blow alone sent him hurling into one of the dirt walls. Connor dropped seconds passed before he slowly picked himself up. Wesley winced slightly when he saw the blood streaming from a gash on his forehead and from the cut on his lip. He knew that if that had been him he probably wouldn't be getting up. He needed to hurry Connor was strong but he wasn't strong enough to hold off all of them for much longer. Content that Connor was occupied he reached into his pocket and pulled out a small draw string bag he lifted the gem and slipped it securely inside his pocket setting the bag in its place. Whispering words not of his native tongue Wesley invoked powers much greater than he. The simple light show he was about to conduct was about to be spectacular. A simple but effective ruse. He couldn't destroy the gem so he would fake it. He reached over and picked up a rather large rock and smashed the sack. A small shock wave of blue, green, and red light emitted from the back sending everyone living or otherwise sprawling. "It's done. We have to go now!" Wesley got to his feet sprinting over and pulled Connor to his. The clambered to the surface of the tunnels and quickly into the daylight where the old ones couldn't follow.

"You destroyed it." Connor breathed pulling a strand of cloth from the end of his shirt and applied it to the gash on his forehead in an attempt to slow the bleeding enough to give it the chance to heal. Wesley reached inside his pocket feeling the hard sharpness of the gem.

"It's done."


	5. Chapter 5

Q & A 5

Present Day-Los Angeles

Wesley looked up from where he sat at his desk to see Fred walking in with her usual warm brown eyes and bold brilliant smile. "Quinn just called; she and Angel made it to SunnyDale without incident." Fred paused for a second and then backtracked stumbling over her words slightly. "Or mostly without incident that is." Wesley couldn't help but smile and to guess.

"She's met Buffy I take it?" Fred nodded smiling slightly.

"Buffy tried to kill her." Fred spoke freely. After realizing what she'd just said her eyes widened. "Not on purpose, Buffy didn't try to kill her on purpose. Quinn was out hunting and Buffy found her in the graveyard. New face you know, mix up." Fred walked closer to the window overlooking the city. The sun was nearly setting. "You think they'll be alright?" She asked hopeful. Wesley spun in his chair.

"Buffy made a decision one that saved countless lives. She told Angel herself that she'd moved on. Buffy is Buffy granted but I've never know her to be explicitly selfish. It might take a moment but she'll eventually be happy knowing that Angel is happy even though it's not at her expense." Wesley explained. Fred nodded a smile spreading once more across her lips.

"Alright well I've got to get back to the lab." With that last sentence she bounded out of the office and disappeared into the sea of Wolfram and Hart employees. Wesley stood from where he sat and closed and locked the doors of his office. He walked over to a small decorative picture hanging on one of the southernmost walls and lifted it off the wall revealing a safe. He imputed his six digit pass code and thumb print and turned the tumbler lock pulling open the metal door. The same dread as before washed over him as he looked into the safe. The cat's eye gem was gone.

He held the gem up into the light watching as the little bit of sunlight refracted off of it. "Such a small beautiful thing about to cause mass destruction." The deep voiced man spoke in awe clutching the gem tightly in a fist. He had rested for too long in the deep underground of the SunnyDale High School ruble. It was now time for him to go out and play. The being spun sharply around on his heel. "You interrupt me, why?" He growled. The lower being swallowed nervously as he approached.

"Angel is back in SunnyDale sire." He relayed news. The being waved his hand in dismissal and small cruel smile curling at the corner of his lips.

"That worries me not. He can't stop what is to be brought forth." The lower creature ducked his head.

"I know sire. That is not what worries me. He brought with him the one spoken of in the prophecies. He calls her wife." The information reached the beings ears and he chuckled. It was not a pleasurable sound.

"That's just perfect." He held up the gem again. "We get her close enough to this and we can take her out of the picture and take her away from Angel at the same time. Mmmmm perfect." He looked to the side of the gem at the lower being. "Bring her to me."

"So Angel went from being the boss of Angel Investigations to the CEO of Wolfram and Hart which used to be an evil law firm?" Buffy asked as she listened to Quinn tell her how things were in LA.

"It still is evil, just less evil now that Angel is in charge." Quinn responded. Buffy looked at her Quinn shrugged.

"I don't exactly know what happened I wasn't there when the whole deal went down." Buffy twirled a stake in her hand as she thought about the information she was just given.

"And every person that was working for Angel before is working for him at the law firm in a specialty department." She stated. Quinn nodded.

"Yes. Everyone possesses a certain talent or skill so they head up certain specialty departments." Buffy nodded understanding. Quinn had already given her the low down as to who was where. She also mentioned that she had somehow been roped into the law firms Special Weapons and Tactics Team. Tree branches behind them rustled as if rehearsed both the slayer and the hybrid spun around on their heel stakes at the ready. The each scanned the area looking for a source for the noise. A man in plain black clothes materialized from the dark a small secretive smirk across his face. The smirk of someone who knew the punchline to his best friends inside joke. "Leave the slayer take the other." At the order others materialized out of the darkness all sporting the same black clothing.

"Since when does no one want me?" Buffy asked feeling a little offended. The others advanced moving more quickly than they should if they were human. Quinn squared off throwing her arm up in defense. She stepped forward and threw a jab cross jump front kick combination the kick landing center mass sending the guy flying backward into one of the tombstones. She turned on a heel in time to throw up her hand with the stake dusting the advancing vampire. She looked up to see Buffy round housing another moving atop him just to punch the stake threw his chest. One of them tackled her from the side she plummeted to the ground his weight landing on top of her. She watched as fangs grew closer and closer to her neck. She grunted with the effort of holding him off.

"I happen to have my own pair of those." She growled feeling her own canines enlarge and her vision shift from normal to slightly more enhanced. She gave him what he wanted and pulled his head closer to herself burring her head into his neck feeling the soft flesh of his skin as she bit into it. Savagely she grabbed hold and yanked tearing out his throat. She threw him to the side blood pouring out of the wound. She reached over and plunged the stake into his heart. She could feel the blood running down the corner of her mouth. It was sour and stale not at all the sweet nectar that gave sustenance to humans. She moved to strike out again went she felt something like a needle enter her. She looked down to see the flowered end of a trank dart sticking out of her chest. She looked up. "You son of a bi…" She dropped losing consciousness.

"Stop! Grab the girl we got what we came for!" They picked up Quinn and disappeared leaving Buffy to revel about what she had just witnessed.

"Shit." Buffy starred off into the darkness. _Since when does evil not want to take out the slayer?_ Whatever the reason for abducting Quinn Buffy imagined it wasn't to wine and dine her. She needed to find Angel.

"They took out all but five of our guys sire." The lower being spoke anxiously. The all-powerful one watched the unconscious girl lying on the floor of her small prison.

"Well worth it I have the girl. More can always be made." He replied calmly moving to kneel before the cage resting his forearm across the bars. He threaded an arm between the bars a line of blue white electricity shot from the tips of his fingers into Quinn. With a jolt of shearing pain running down her spin she shot up retreating away from the source of that pain. Her eyes widened taking in her unfamiliar surroundings.

"You've made a huge mistake." She snarled feeling her canines enlarge her pupils shifted and she could see clearly the dark corner of underground she was being held in. She emerged from her dark corner and lunged. He pulled his arm from inside the cage tisking at her as he moved along the cages length.

"You phase differently." He observed. "But then again why shouldn't you you are different than the rest of them aren't you." He stated.

"What would you know?" She sneered.

"Oh I know quite a bit. I've been waiting for your arrival for a long while. You should feel special there's a prophecy about you. One that makes me very happy." His words were almost giddy. She took a step closer to the bars of her steel prison. "Don't you want to know what you're prophesized to do?" He asked happily. Quinn glared at him. "A daughter shall be born. Born to two vampires she will be the destroyer's undoing." She wanted to reach through the cage and choke the exuberance out of his voice.

"The destroyer?" She asked. He waged a finger before her.

"Ah ah ah. You're a smart girl I'm sure it'll come to you." He toyed. She stepped away from the bars her mind reeling. _The destroyer…_ Her eyes widened. _That's what Connor was known as in Qortoth._

"That a girl." The demon praised. _There's a prophecy saying that I'm going to kill Connor? I can't…It's not true. Angel's son._ Her thoughts flitted through her mind. "You shouldn't worry too hard, I still need you to get rid of your pesky soul boy husband." She stepped up to the bars again hissing.

"I'll never..." She began he cut her off.

"Oh I'm afraid you won't have much of a choice my dear." He reached into his pocket and pulled out something. He held it between two fingers in the light making sure that Quinn could see it. "I'm sure you know what this is." He stated. Quinn gasped.

"Cat's eye." She breathed out. The demon smiled.

"Yes, your friend Wesley was a little naughty wasn't he. Saying he was going to destroy this little gem when he in fact didn't." He tossed the gem into the prison with Quinn. "I'm afraid this isn't going to work in your favor." He chuckled stepping away from the cage. Watching in delight as the gem began to glow refracting light. A beam of its pure glow shot out into the nearest being. The impact of the gems power sent Quinn flying into the far back wall of the prison. She crashed into the ground knocked unconscious once more.

"Who took her?" Angel growled from across the room. Buffy looked at him with some grief.

"I don't know. I've never seen them before. They were well prepared like they've had this planned for a while." She answered watching Angel pick up his jacket and swing it on striding toward the door. "Where are you going?" She asked. He turned back.

"You don't know who took her. I'm going to go find out who did." With nothing else he walked out. Buffy walked down the stairs meeting up with Willow and Xander.

"Well he didn't look to cheery." Xander remarked Buffy looked at him.

"His wife was just kidnapped by evil." Xander's expression fell.

"Oh." He shrank back and decided not to talk anymore. Willow looked at her with an empathetic expression.

"Should we try to find her dad?" Willow asked. Buffy nodded.

"Call Cordy and see if she knows who it is, when we find her we are going to need all the muscle we have." Willow nodded and moved into the kitchen to make the call. Xander looked at Buffy.

"You ok there Buff?" He asked when he caught checking out. She shook her head and looked over at him.

"Yeah, it's just I remember when he was all angry and stoic like that when I'd been taken." She said and walked off. Xander watched he as she moved into another room and shook his head.

"He's married and she still…ugh what's a guy gotta be?" He groaned.

"Yeah I know who it is I'll call him he's here in LA, but Willow you might want to prepare Buffy." Cordelia warned. Willow's eyes widened in shock but she quickly recovered.

"Ok, right I'll do that. Thanks Cordy." Willow clicked off and moved into the other room finding Buffy.

Spike sat leaning against the bar a glass of equal part hard liquor equal parts blood sat in front of him. He had a cold hand wrapped around the glass as he stared up at the television hanging in the far left corner of the bar. Beside the low hum of the hi deph tv he could hear the loud crack of the pool balls smacking into each other after being struck by the pool stick. He heard the hushed conversations in the back corners of the bar. He could feel eyes on him as he sat there with his glass curled toward his chest. "That's far enough mate." He turned his head seeing one of the locals approaching. His fangs may not have been visible but Spike knew what he was.

"Is it true what they say?" He asked. Spike detected what he thought was sorrow. He took a sip of his spiked blood letting it slide down his eagerly waiting throat then addressed the vampire.

"And what is it they say?" Spike repeated.

"That you went and got yourself a soul so you could bag the slayer, but even she didn't want you." The one mocked.

"Tred lightly friend." Spike warned.

"What are you going to do confess me to death?" He taunted. Spike stood facing the vamp bugging him.

"You know I just might." He replied. Spike watched as the other vamp broke off a piece of wood from one of the benched and gripped it in his hand.

"You used to be one of the most feared of us all. The stories I was told about you made me want to be you. Now you're just a waste." The vampire made his last mistake and lunged. Spike stepped to the side gripped the man by his collar lowered him bringing his knee up into his face. Spike spun around round housing the other guy in the face causing him to stagger back. He swung his leg around sweeping the other guys feet out from beneath him. He landed hard onto his back. Spike bent down and picked up the shard of wood he dropped as he fell. Spike moved to straddle him. He leaned down and gripped the guy's shirt in his hand and pulled him up the stake hovering just above his heart.

"Or I might just kill you the old fashioned way." Spike inched the stake closer but was interrupted when his phone rang. "Might be your lucky day mate." He released the guy's shirt and reached into the inside pocket of his black duster and pulled out his cell phone flipping it open. "Ah yeah I'm kind of busy here." He said into the receiver. Listening he stepped away gripping the stake in his hand hard enough turning his knuckles white. "You're sure?" He asked. "Yes I'm going. About to be a freaking family reunion." He slid the phone back into his pocket. He looked at the guy shooting daggers his way, a small grim smile crossing his face. "I have to go find my daughter." With that he threw the stake to the ground and walked out.

Angel, Buffy, Xander, and Willow all sat silently in the front room of Buffy's house waiting for Quinn's dad to show up. Xander looked up from where he sat on the arm of the chair Willow sat in. "Did Cordy say how long he was going to be?"

"A few hours, but that was a few hours ago which would make it any time now." Willow responded looking at her watch. As if on cue the doorbell rang. Buffy popped up from where she sat on opposite ends of the couch with Angel.

"That must be him." She said moving to open the door. She pulled open the wooden door she had pictured many versions of different people but none of them prepared her for what she saw when she opened the door. She fell back from the door. "Spike." She breathed out. Everyone within hearing distance shot out of their seats. Angel being amongst the first, a small sarcastic smile on his face curled across his lips.

"You have got to be kidding me. Have you no original thoughts of your own Spike?" Angel asked heatedly. Spike stepped in crossing his arms over his chest.

"And I suppose you do?" He asked.

"I get cursed with a soul; you find a way to seek one. I fall in love with the slayer and not five seconds after I leave you sweep in and on the same slayer at that! I have a son. You have to go out and have a kid!"

"Angel." Buffy began looking more than a little hurt. Angel backed off moving over to a corner to sulk.

"You had to be cursed with a soul. I went out and found one. Quite painful might I add. I didn't come here to argue I came here to find my daughter." As if befallen with a sudden madness Angel began laughing. Spike shot a glance at him.

"What are you laughing so hard at you sod?" Angel held up his hand. The small band of metal glinting in the dim light.

"Well well there dad let's go find Quinn shall we?" Spike shot forward shoving Angel backward into the wall of the living room. Angel continued to laugh.

"You married my daughter!?" His brow twitched in fury. Spike picked Angel up and threw him outside onto the cement sidewalk. "Can't you keep your bloody grubby fingers off anything?!" Spike threw a punch Angel caught it and caught Spike in the eye with a jab.

"What Spike? You can't be happy so no one can? Is that is?" Angel taunted ducking under an axe kick. He danced to the side and landed a side kick into Spike's side.

"She was supposed to find someone anyone else. Not the ninny with the Nancy boy hair gel." Spike tucked and rolled after jumping over Angel's leg sweep.

"Someone needs to stop this. This isn't going to help Quinn." Willow said objectively. Xander smiled.

"Gotta admit it is pretty entertaining though." Buffy and Willow looked sideways at him. He shrugged. Buffy looked at Willow.

"Do you want to or should I?" Willow threw out her hand she had advanced tremendously in her craft. Graduating from floating pencils to telekinesis with a simple thought and power of will she was able to throw Angel and Spike apart each landing on separate parts of the lawn. She stepped out onto the grass between the both of them.

"Stop acting like a bunch of high schoolers. Fighting each other isn't doing Quinn any favors." She looked from vampire to vampire. "When we find Quinn if you want to fight after I won't stop you." She added scolding them like a bunch of children caught eating dessert before dinner. Spike got to his feet dusting himself off. His gaze never left Angel's.

"Fine." He reluctantly agreed. Angel rose to his feet crossing his arms over his chest.

"Fine." He agreed. Willow smiled and cheerfully spoke.

"Good boys." She retreated back into the house both of them following not willing to take their eyes off of each other.


	6. Chapter 6

Q & A 6

She awoke with the strange feeling of her racing heart. Sitting up she wiped away the beads of sweat from her brow with the back of her dirtied hand. Lest the perspiration roll into her eyes and make them sting. She felt the thudding of her pulse through the vein in her forehead. Her vision wavered with the intense migraine her body was trying to ward off. She tried to calm her pulse where she sat. While it may beat slower than a normal human it still beat. Had anyone happened upon her while she was unconscious would have thought her to be dead. She put her hand to her head felling her matted hair. She grimaced. She must look like a disaster she surely felt like one. She dropped her hand and looked around her six by six prison remembering what she hoped had only been a very disturbing dream. The gem resting on the cold stone ground crushed that small thread of hope. A sense of guilt over came her nearly knocking her back where she'd lain. The feeling felt like a dam guarding all emotion within her had ruptured and now the angry torrents were free. She looked inward. What did she have to feel so guilty about? She reflected a moment realizing it wasn't coming from her. She slowly rose to her feet and stepped toward the cage grabbing the cool metal of the bars in her small hands. Trying to focus her vison through the blistering pain in her head she found a dark figure several feet off hunkered down in the furthest shadows of the dark room. "You." Her words were barely audible even to her own words. She cleared her throat. "You." The figured stirred. Glowing eyes stuck out in the darkness focusing on her. She shivered. So eerie, so…inhuman. So familiar. The eyes staring at her were a reflection of her own. They were the eyes of a vampire.

"She awakes." Yellow eyes hissed taking strides toward her. She watched him with interest as he approached. "Master will be pleased." His lips curled in a menacing smirk. He turned his back on her to inform his master of the change in his prisoner.

"A soulless creature, yet you still feel guilt." She tilted her head at the anomaly before her. She regarded him as if he were a science project. He turned back around to look at her he sneered.

"What would you know of it?" He asked. She smiled slightly.

"It rolls off you in waves. Your guilt weighs on your shoulders like a boulder." As she spoke she could feel something lying beneath the guilt. Her eyebrows furrowed as she tried to decipher what it was. She had to dig deep beneath the initial layer. He stepped closer to her prison cell watching her. A sick smile lit up his cruel features reaching his eyes. Making them glow brighter. Her head shot up as she peeled back the hidden layers. Beneath the layer of guilt was a layer of regret. She felt sick as his emotions washed over her like an acidic summer rain. It burned through her. "Regret. You feel regret for something you didn't do and guilt because you didn't do it." She could dig at just what it was these emotions sprang from but she was sure as death she didn't want to know. He closed the distance between them his face nearly pressing against the bars. He had no breath, but being this close she could smell the blood on him. He had fed not too long ago.

"I have an imaginative mind, creative. That didn't change when I was reborn it was only intensified. I'd come from a large family and I had a new artistic way to end each and every one of them." She backed away from the bars as she watched his head tilt to the side in his sweet reverie. She could feel bile rise in the back of her throat. "I'd broken into the butcher shop a few blocks from where my family lived and took the butchers finest set of knives. After all he wouldn't be needing them." He chuckled pacing the length of her steel cage. "I'd made the first of what would have been thousands of beautiful cuts." His awful expression turned to one of anger as he spun around facing her again. "I was rudely interrupted in the process." His fangs receded and piercing blue eyes replaced the glowing yellow. She gasped in some ways it was worse. He pursed his lips at the not so distant memory. "Looking back I traded a small pleasure for a…far greater one." As he looked at her his eyes grew hungry as he looked unsubtly from her eyes to her chest and further down. The torrent of regret laced guilt was replaced by lust. She felt it coiling through her insides stabbing her like shards of metal that had been set in a fire for a time before slashing through her flesh. She fought the urge to throw up. Her fighting proved futile she lost her hold and everything she had ingested in the last day was displayed on the floor for all to view. She went to the back of the prison cell pushing up against the back of the cell she slid down hugging her knees. She heard the haughty spells of laughter as he walked from the room. She buried her head between her knees tears streamed from her eyes wetting her filth covered arms. One vampire's emotions had made her sick a group of four or five would be intolerable. She knew what they had planned and there would be nothing she could do to stop it. The tears poured more quickly as she began to sob.

He had the vampire's shirt gripped tightly in his fists his patience wearing thin. In fact he wasn't sure he had any left. He lowered his head so that it was merely inches away. His expression was menacing. "Where is she?" The foulness of his mood made Buffy flinch from where she stood a few feet behind him. The creature he had clutched in his grasp smiled as if he was anywhere else but in the hands of a murderous fiend.

"You're too late!" He threw his head back to laugh and released one hand and used it to punch him in the gut. In the middle of his bout of laughter he coughed. "It's quite wonderful really. It's truly her own doing. Your Quinn is just so…empathetic. Always concerned with others, her empathy will be her own undoing." His lips curled into a victorious smile. Angel pulled the vampire toward the ground and he drove his knee threw his face. A loud crack of his breaking nose rang through the silent air. Angel held him up watching blood spurt and roll from his nose.

"Where. Is. She?" Raising his voice in fury. The demon looked at Angel with an expression that conveyed a degree of grief.

"I used to be told stories of the great vampire that reined for centuries. Destroying cities burning them to the ground. A vampire so merciless, so meticulous, so masterful in his art of killing he was revered by everyone one of his kind." The awe was evident in his words as he reminisced. Buffy felt sick doing her best to push down that feeling. "What happened to you Angelus?" Angel clenched his jaw and gritted his teeth. He felt his canines enlarge feeling heat behind his eyes as they changed from their earthly brown to the unnatural yellow glow of the creature he was and loathed. Angel pulled a stake from the band of his pants and without hesitation punched it through the grinning vampire's heart. The dust settled into a pile at his feet. He turned setting a murderous brown gaze upon those who were with him. Several recoiled at the sight. The platinum blonde that no one cared for stepped around the slayer and her gang of scoobies.

"We're running out of time. I can feel it. We have to find her." Spike urged. Angel glanced at him.

"I know." He growled.

"Where could they have taken her?" Spike turned around pacing back toward the group.

"If its vampires that have taken her it has to be somewhere underground." Angel speculated. Xander perked up.

"That narrows it down." Both Spike and Angel glared at him he shrank side stepping behind Buffy and out of their view.

"We don't have time to search the entire SunnyDale sewer system." Spike's hands sprang up in frustration. Willow perked up from behind them stepping away from her friends. Spike regarded her. He had always been fond of Willow.

"Do you have anything of Quinn's on you?" She asked expectantly. She wanted to kick herself for being so stupid. How could she have not thought about this sooner? Something so simple and she had only just thought of it. So much for the high IQ she supposedly had. Spike reached down into his shirt and pulled out a necklace with a smooth fluid motion he yanked the chain from his neck and gently placed it into Willow's hand. She looked at it feeling the cold metal against her skin. It was a silver dog tag with a symbol on it she didn't recognize. The dog tag hung from a silver beaded chain. This would be perfect.

"It was given to her by her favorite author when she went to a signing." Spike smiled recalling the memory. Buffy regarded him, her eyebrows raising in surprise at the softness of his voice.

"It's beautiful Spike." Willow smiled warmly at him. Closing her fist around the dog tag she closed her eyes to concentrate. She centered herself drawing strength that she alone possessed. Picturing Quinn in her mind. She spoke. "Audient verba mea, clamorem meum spiritus inferebant. Indica mihi quid agis amissa virtute manebitis." _Hear my words, hear my cry spirits of the other side. Reveal to me what's been lost by my power you will abide._ Each word was pronounced clearly and concisely.

They all watched in awe as power quivered all around Willow. Light illuminated them all in the darkness surrounding Willow making her short red hair fiery and alive. Angel knew the words she spoke were in Latin but he was not fluent in the language and wasn't able to translate the words. Angel had been around creatures of various supernatural powers but what he witnessed now paled in comparison. He somehow sensed what he witnessed now was only the tip of the iceberg of what he knew Willow to be capable of. Slowly the white light faded and they were once again cloaked with darkness. Willow opened her eyes glancing between the two the concerned husband and distressed father. "I know where she is."


	7. Chapter 7

Q & A 7

There were more of them now and the weight of them was crushing. She could think of anything else couldn't feel anything else but them. It was like she was in a room with no air and loud sounds of every kind. Her breathing was labored and her breaths came in ragged pants. She felt like half of Mount Everest was sitting upon her chest. All of their emotions were the same as the first she had felt. They were so in union that she didn't know where one monster's feelings began and another one's began. All she did know was that she had lost all the liquid her body contained. To make matters worse the stomach acid that had come up was no assaulting her nose. She fought to drown out the feelings she felt her efforts showed in the slickness of sweat on her skin. The front of her shirt was soaked with it and the more time that passed the dried sweat made her shirt stiffen. "Not yet!" Through the mass of emotion pressing in on her Quinn was able to concentrate on the hushed tone of the man that had placed her in her prison. His tone, she thought, sounded agitated and annoyed.

"Why not? Look at her master, she can barely stand. She poses no threat to us now." Even as far away as she was both mentally and physically she heard the smack and the thud as one of the vampires was thrown to the ground.

"Your insolence will get you know where, Redrick. For questioning my leadership I should stake you where you sit." The master turned his back. "But I'm in such a good mood right now." Quinn could feel it pulsing from him into her. How his plans of pitting her against Angel's son was making him giddy. She heaved. Nothing else came up she was left with an aching gut and a throat that was on fire. "I will answer you this once you futuristic pile of dust. We must wait, we must follow the events chronologically if we have any chance of the prophecy unfolding as it has been written. In order for her to wipe out the Destroyer we must be patient." Having learned his lesson Redrick stayed quiet with a small sadistic smile curling across his features. He clamored to his feet and looked at Quinn as he rose. Quinn could feel her time trickling by if she didn't do something soon if someone didn't come for her soon. There would be no hope for her. The pressure on her head became too much to bare. Blackness came and eased the pain if only for a little while.

The sound of feet trudging through the water graded his nerves like a block of cheese through a shredder. Try as he might he couldn't block out the swooshing of the water. His gaze settled on the red sweater that fell to the back of Willow's knees. Angel remembered a time where he would have done anything to see red. He shook his head not allowing himself to sift through the memories of his alter ego. He had more important things to worry about. "Can't you move any faster?" Angel asked. Willow turned her neck glancing behind her.

"Angel." Buffy spoke softly. Angel craned his neck to look off to the side where she was walking off to the side behind him. "She's moving as fast as she can. We will find Quinn, just let Willow do what she does." Angel heaved a stressed sigh. Seeing a look of gratitude pass between the witch and the slayer. Buffy smile slightly.

"We aren't that much farther a few hundred feet maybe." Willow finally spoke. The farther they delved into the sewer the dimmer the ball of light they were following got. Willow urged Angel not to panic that it was doing what it was supposed to be doing. Her efforts were futile. Angel stiffened slightly. Having noticed Buffy watched him trying to figure out what would elicit such a reaction. As they neared a corner of the deeper dwellings of the sewyer Angel's skin tingled with familiarity. The way it does when you walk into a room full of people you know.

"There are others here." Angel breathed. Buffy scrunched up her nose as she looked to figure out what he knew.

"I feel them too. I can't tell how many of them there are though." Spike spoke out. A few more feet and the ball of light completely extinguished. Willow paused and turned around.

"This is it." She spoke preparing herself for the use of her power should she have need. The lowered themselves into the lower depths of the sewer. The lower they sank whispers could be heard. They sank to the ground and defined voices that did not belong to Angel's missing bride could be heard. Angel peeked around the corner seeing dozens upon dozens of the undead gathered there. His eyes kept searching. Desperately they flicked from face to face until finally they found a steel cage in the back corner. What he saw inside made his blood boil. He spotted Quinn laying in the dirt on the inside of the cage. He squinted harder he could see the subtle rise and fall of her chest. At least he knew she was still breathing. He pulled away from the edge. Buffy looked at him expectantly.

"So?" She whispered.

"From what I could see there looks to be about fifty vampires. Quinn is in a cage in the far right corner." Angel glanced from Buffy to Willow.

"How many can you take?" He asked.

"As many as I have to." She replied with a small grin. They all nodded and on the count of three they let the dust fly.

The realization of outsiders in their midst was immediate. Angel stalked forward throwing punches and kicks as he moved. He danced away from all opposing blows. His anger at having his wife locked in a cage like an animal fueled him. He drove on. He flipped a vampire onto his back and staked him without hesitation. Not waiting for the dust to settle he moved on. Staking another who had stupidly ran up on him from the front. He made his way to the cage spotting from the corner of his eye the platinum blonde no one liked moving closer to the front of the cage. Spike was on him facing the enemy. Chaos ensued before him. All around vampires imploded into dust. Back near the entrance he watched as a circle of vampires gathered around Willow. A small red glow for between her palms and a second later an aftershock sent the vampires sprawling backwards some of them conveniently landed on spikes dusting themselves. The ones that didn't regained ground and started in on Willow again. His eyes flicked from the fiery red to the golden locked slayer. Her foot arced through the air sailing square into one of the vamps jaw. Spike winced slightly that was going to bruise. He watched with some desire as the slayer ducked dived and dodged blows coming from all directions. Behind him he heard the distinct sound of metal grinding against metal and he glanced to the side watching as Angel hammered away at the lock with a bolt cutter he brought with him. Spike saw the lock fall like a lump into the dirt. Wasting no more time Angel yanked open the door of the cage before he could move his firmly planted back foot Spike surged into the cage and dropped to a knee gently moving his daughter's hair to the side. He could see the blue purple of a bruise forming around her eye. Blood covered most of her face either having come from cuts on her lips or drained from her nose. White hot rage warmed Spike as he gingerly lift his daughter from the dirt feeling his quadriceps and hamstrings coil as he stood. "Dad." She choked out coughing. Spike tilted his head down to look at her once more.

"Shhh, baby. It's ok." He cooed like he had when he had held her in his arms when she was an infant. The tension that he had felt seeped from her and she went limp in his arms. Spike looked to Angel.

"We need to get out of here now." Spike swiftly moved from that cage. Angel stopped any advancing vampire from getting at them.

"Willow! Buffy!" Angel called out. At their names they both turned and retreated. Willow faced the enemy letting Spike get Quinn out first followed by Angel and Buffy. With a subtle flourish of her hand…

"Incinerate." Everything and everyone closest to her caught fire.

Spike sat on the edge of the bed one of Quinn's small hands in his. He knew they were deceiving. They looked like small fragile dainty female hands but he better he knew they held strength that even he could never know. He leaned forward tracing the outline of her face with the fingers of his other hand. "You rest now my sweet. Daddy's here." He leaned forward further and set his line ruby lips to her forehead. From the doorway he heard whispers. Spike looked over his shoulder to see Willow speaking with Angel just outside of Buffy's bedroom. He wanted to know what all the hush hush was about but he didn't want to leave Quinn.

Spike sat like stone at his daughter's side for what felt like, well, forever. He looked at the alarm clock on the side table and realized it had only been a few hours. He felt Quinn stir next to him. A strand of her caramel colored hair fell from where he had brushed it aside. Her eyes slowly opened and she squinted trying to block out the bright light. Spike got up and shut out the light. "Dad?" Quinn whispered turning her head to the side she spoke with mild panic.

"I'm here. It's alright I'm here." He took his seat on the bed once more and took her hand into his cold stone like ones.

"Dad they did something to me. They…" She closed her eyes and swallowed trying to remember what happened. She remembered a bright light and then falling into darkness. There was a jewel. The vampire had shown her a jewel. She scrunched up her face trying to remember. She gasped. It wasn't a jewel it was a gem it was the cat's eye! "he threw the cat's eye. I feel everything dad. I feel everyone! He threw the cat's eye in with me." Her words turned into chocked sobs. Spike felt himself breaking as he watched tears roll down her cheeks. He pulled her up to him circling his arms around her.

"Shhh. It's ok. Listen to me baby. Listen to my talk. Don't listen to everything else." She could feel his muscles coil and release in his back as he moved his hands up and down hers trying to soothe her. He felt her body shake as she continued to sob. He continued to talk in her ear telling her sweet nothings. Just talking making sound. Doing anything to take her mind from what she was feeling. Running out of things to say. He settled for telling her a story. He moved into the bed resting against the headboard. She was curled up in his lap. Reassuringly his hands moves of her hair. She tried concentrating on the words he was saying and slowly the screaming feelings she felt within quieted to a distant yell. She felt his body shake as he looked up to see Buffy walking into the bedroom. She looked at her conflicted, she didn't want to drudge up the things she worked so hard to quiet but she was also curious. Curiosity won. She opened herself up a little bit. She was surprised at the warm feeling like the steady heat from a camp fire flowing from Buffy. Buffy looked from where Quinn lay in Spike's lap to meet Spike's gaze. It was not the feeling Quinn was expecting. Out of experimentation Quinn opened herself up further allowing herself to feel into her father. She shutter in his lap in shock. She felt his arms circle around her like steel traps. "Quinn?" Concerned he looked from Buffy. Quinn felt the same warm feeling in Spike that she felt from Buffy except it wasn't like she was basking in the warm glow of a subtle camp fire. From Spike it was like she was standing in the middle of a forest while it was ablaze.

"Spike I need to talk to you." Buffy urged. Quinn sat up and pushed herself back against the headboard.

"Go dad. I'll be fine for a second." She responded. She watched with some sadness as her dad got up from the bed and walked out the door closing it behind him. She heard their hush tones. Had she been a hundred percent she would have been able to make out what they were saying. She closed her eyes and laid her head against the board. The distance of the people in the house was far enough from her that what she felt was a steady thrum. The door opened and that thrum blew apart like a soldier releasing a hand grenade. She cried out at the sudden pain. She recognized the feeling. It felt the same as Roderick. Except there was no underlying layer of regret. What she felt now was pure unadulterated remorse. It jabbed at her like a thousand tiny knives. Poking her everywhere and all at once. "Stop! Please stop it! It hurts." She cried out. She felt as if those jabs were causing her to bleed. She felt her arm and brought her fingers to her face but she couldn't see any blood. He rushed over to the bed.

"Quinn. It's ok. It's just me." It was Angel. She couldn't stop crying. He took her up into his arms. She struggled against him pushing him away. "Quinn, it's me. It's ok." He said. She looked at him tears streaming from hers eyes.

"I feel everything." She cried. He looked at her wiping tears from her face but not being able to wipe them away fast enough. She could feel that same warmth that she had felt in Spike and Buffy in Angel but the amount of remorse he carried drowned it out. "I can't. Go!" She pulled away from him punching him in the shoulder trying to make him move. He looked at her his eyes feeling hot. His jaw clenched.

"Quinn I don't…"

"It hurts so much…." She cried out again sobbing. She looked at him. "How can take it? How can you bare to stand?" She asked. He regarded her again.

"What?" He asked.

"Your guilt. I feel it! I feel all of it. I can't take it! It hurts. GO! Get out! Get out!" She yelled mortified Angel turned away and ran from the room hearing the sobs and shouts of his wife. He closed the door behind him. His wife didn't want him. Couldn't be near him. What he carried within himself was never meant to be carried or felt by anyone else. It was for him alone. He had hurt Quinn.

Spike and Buffy looked at him when he ran from the room. "Stop this now." He growled before walking off. They both starred after him. Buffy turned back to Spike.

"What was she saying to you?" Buffy asked. Spike shrugged.

"I don't know. What she said wasn't making any sense. She was hysterical." Spike leaned against the wall crossing his arms over his chest.

"I don't care how she sounded I need to know what she said." Buffy insisted. Spike sighed.

"She said they threw a cat's eye at her."

"Does she have any tattoos?" Buffy asked. Spike raised an eyebrow.

"No. Why?" He asked. Buffy and Willow found a peculiar looking tattoo that was no larger than four inches by four inches on the top right of Quinn's shoulder when they had gotten her home and cleaned her up. The tattoo was of a cat.

"Will and I found a tattoo of a black cat on her shoulder. If you said she doesn't have any tattoos. Then how does she suddenly have one?" Buffy asked. Thinking of Willow and what she had found in one of her books about the tattoo. "Willow says that the tattoo of a black cat appears when the cat's eye gem has been used. She also says the gem amplifies the power a person possesses naturally." As Buffy explained the things Quinn had been rambling about began to make sense. She could feel everything they felt. Spike glanced down the hall where Angel had walked through a few moments again. Angel tortured himself for centuries of evil deeds committed by Angelus.

"Do you need me for anything else? I need to get back to her." Buffy shook her head. Without saying anything else Spike disappeared back inside the bedroom. She starred after him trying to figure out what to think. _Spike has a daughter…Spike raised a baby…A screaming child that cries all the time._ As hard as she tried she couldn't imagine William the Bloody raising a child. As she starred at the closed door to her bedroom. Whatever confusion she felt now she was sure of one thing. Spike absolutely loved Quinn.


	8. Chapter 8

Q & A 8

Buffy searched the house moving from room to room trying to find Angel. There was no trace of him anywhere in her home. _He wouldn't have just left…_ She thought as she continued her search. She paused watching a memory unfold across her mind's eye. What played first was a scene immediately after they had battled the mayor and burned down the high school. Smoke or fog she wasn't sure thickened the air and between two fire engines she found Angel watching her. Without so much as a word or a facial expression of any kind he turned away from her and left. She batted away the painful memory. _Maybe he would have…_ Her mind flitted. She turned the knob to the door in the kitchen and pulled it open. A dark figure was huddled on the front steps of the porch. She could hear soft distressed sighs coming from the black heap. Buffy sank side him. Angel turned his face up. The anguish was apparent on his pale timeless features. He was in pain. Buffy felt herself sink in empathy. She remembered the times she felt the way he did now when she had feared for his life. He felt the way she did the many times she knew he was in pain but there wasn't anything she could do to stop it. "I want to help her. But she doesn't want me near her. So instead I hurt her." He looked away. Buffy grabbed his hand.

"Look at me." Reluctantly he turned back toward her. "You didn't do this to her. This isn't your fault." She squeezed his hand. "The vamps that took her did this. They used a gem that is called cat's eye." Angel listen intently. Buffy felt his hand stiffen in hers. His brown eyes met hers.

"What did you call it?" Angel asked.

"Cat's eye." Angel shook his head.

"No, that has to be wrong. Connor and Wesley destroyed it." Angel spoke he remembered Wesley dividing them into teams. He and Connor went after the gem. Wesley had said that it was destroyed. Unless it wasn't. Angel's tears ceased and were replaced by white hot fury. He had taken Connor away and stolen his entire childhood and now he was the reason his wife didn't want him with her. Angel stood pulling his hand from Buffy's. "I have to go." He gave her no time to ask any questions he was gone.

Buffy starred into the darkness dumbfounded. Her mouth hung open in unfinished speech. She clamped it shut and climbed to her feet. Her brows scrunched up as she squinted trying to look into the darkness. He wasn't there he was just gone. She felt that much. She shrugged, he was angry she felt bad for whoever was on the receiving end of it.

Los Angeles

He wiped the well-worn cloth over his glasses cleaning them for what was probably the twelfth time. The wooden oak desk that he sat on was making his lower back hurt but he supposed that was the least of his worries. He slipped on his glasses and looked to where the steel safe door was open in the wall above one of the many expansive book shelves in his lavish office in the law firm. He looked once more into the safe hoping that what he wasn't seeing in there that should have been there would suddenly manifest. It never did. He could feel Gunn breathing down his neck. The hot air made the hair on his neck stand on end. "What do you mean it's gone? You destroyed it. It went poof. It's gone. If somethings gone it can't be stolen." Gunn was fuming. If Wesley chose to he could see a light red coloring Gunn's otherwise very smooth mocha colored skin. Wesley looked up from where he sat. Gunn stopped from where in the middle of the room hauling his pacing. His dark chocolate gaze met Wesley's. "It can be stolen if the gem you said was destroyed wasn't actually destroyed." Gunn said inching closer. "Naw, Wesley wouldn't lie about something like that now would he." Gunn was entering into Wesley's personal bubble. Wesley shot to his feet taking a step backward. "You didn't destroy it did you?" Gunn was only a few inches from his face now.

"I hope for your sake that what Gunn says isn't true." They both turned to see Angel filling in the doorway. They both could tell that he was fuming, he always looked bigger when he was angry.

"Angel, I…" Before Wesley could finish his sentence Angel shoved Gunn to the side gripped Wesley by the throat and pinned him against the back wall.

"You what? Do you never learn Wesley? When you act alone nothing good happens! You took my son and now my wife doesn't want me near her." Angel pulled his arm and released it into Wesley's gut. Angel let go and doubled over. "They used that gem on her and now she feels everything around her. She feels everything. Everything I've done. She feels it. And she doesn't want me near her. Fix it now!" Angel let his fist fly catching Wesley in the jaw dropping him to his knees. Wesley drew in a painful breath before he spoke.

"You have to find the gem and destroy it. It's the only way to release its hold on her." He climbed to his feet his gaze on Angel never wavering. "Angel, let me…" Angel shoved his against the wall. Wesley's head bounced off the dry wall and he felt pain sear the back of his head and down to his shoulder blades.

"You've done enough." He turned and spun his long black leather coat billowing out around him as he parted the office.

"Angel!" Wesley called after him. Angel didn't even flinch as if his name had never been called. He pulled himself off the wall and stood wobbling on his feet he looked at Gunn who also had turned his back and prepared to leave. "Gunn." No response. "Gunn listen to me!" Wesley shouted. Gunn hesitated for a second but kept walking. Wesley continued to yell after him. "If they don't find the gem and destroy it soon. Everything that Quinn is feeling will kill her!"

SunnyDale

Quinn laid in bed feeling a soreness in her hip from laying on it all night. She felt weak she wanted to cry she felt weak and she had done absolutely nothing she hadn't even walked to the bathroom. Trying to keep control of the ocean of emotion inside her was draining her strength. She inhaled a breath and smiled calmed at the scent of cigarette smoke and spice smell. She looked up to see Spike's head resting in one of his hands his eyes closed. He had stayed with her all night. She could feel a thrum of worry emanating from him, but all else was quiet. She studied him for a second. Taking in his solid pale contoured cheeks and his platinum blonde hair, she let herself loosen the grasp she had on the gate holding back the flood. All she could feel from him was what she already knew. He was worried about her and he loved her. It wasn't the standing stranded in the middle of a forest fire kind of love that he felt for Buffy. But it was the same soft touch she felt now that she did when he spoke to her. She continued staring at him why wasn't she feeling torrents of emotion from him like she was from everyone else? Like she had from Angel? _Oh, no! Angel._ Dread washed over her as she remembered how she had felt when he was near and how she had thrown him out how hurt he had looked when he left. She knew what Spike had done in his passed but she couldn't feel anything from him over it. No guilt, no remorse, no joy, no sadness, and no horror over what he had done. "What have I told you about starring love?" Quinn looked up to see his eyes were still closed. Quinn smiled slightly.

"That it's polite and I should continue to do it." She answered. Spike opened his eyes and a smile curled over his thin red lips.

"I see your sarcasm is intact." She smiled tiredly and sat up in the bed resting against the backboard. Spike looked up at her. "What is it? What's wrong?" He asked his tone conveyed his worry. Quinn shook her head.

"No I'm fine, nothing's wrong. I was just trying to feel you." She folded her hands together quiet for a moment. "I can't feel anything solid from you." She sighed trying to figure out just exactly where she was trying to go. Spike waited. "It's just I felt all of the things, awful awful things Angel carries with him puts himself through every day for the things he's done. I know you weren't London's golden boy, but I don't feel any of that from you." She continued. Spike pursed his lips.

"I do a better job hiding it." He said simply. A second later he chuckled. "Ironic isn't it? Emotions and feelings used to pour off me like a lovely tapped vein. And now it doesn't." Quinn watched him for a moment.

"Uh huh…" She got to her feet swaying within the span of a single heartbeat he had an arm wrapped around her waist steadying her. She held her palms up. "I'm cool. I'm good." He released but didn't back away. "I need to use the bathroom." She said. Spike walked over to the door and tugged it open leading the way into the hallway.

"I'll be just outside if you need me." Quinn smiled and closed the door behind her. She drug herself to the mirror pressing her palms against the cool marble counter. She saw herself in the mirror and cringed. She could see her forehead glistening with sweat. Her face was paler than it should be and her hands felt cool and clammy. She twisted the knob running the cold water. She pooled some in her hands and splashed her face. The cold was welcomed. She pulled her toothbrush from one of the drawers and put it to her teeth circling it around. She could feel the tooth paste burn where it touched her lips. With the water running she spit watching as the water washed it down the drain. She looked into the mirror her eyes crinkling in the pain she could feel coming. The toothbrush dropped to the tiled floor with deafening sound. Quinn collapsed to the tile next to her fallen dental hygiene instrument. She could feel them all of them. Not just inside the house but outside. She felt the kids on the sidewalks walking home from school. She could feel fires of love in whom she knew to be boys. She felt spikes of pain as when someone feel to the pavement from a skateboard scrapping their knees and hands. She felt the peaked happiness of the girl who was just asked out by the boy she's had a crush on for the past five years. With all the foreign feelings invading and overloading her system she was vaguely aware of the pounding she heard. She could decipher its origin and then she heard the door splinter.

"Quinn!" He rushed in kneeling beside her. She did nothing to acknowledge him. All she could do was stare blankly at the ceiling above. She felt his fingers did into her back as he gripped her shoulders shaking her shouting her name trying to get her to respond. "Quinn! Someone help!" He shouted. She heard quickened footsteps and more voices. Everything it was crushing her. It all felt like she was feet below the ocean descending deeper into the depths. The pressure becoming heavier and heavier until finally she couldn't see anything at all.

"I can't do anything for her Spike." Willow spoke sympathetically. Spike looked at her cutting her a dangerous glare. What might have frightened her at one point no longer roused much fear. "The only way to help her now is to find the gem and destroy it." Her words were forceful.

"It's crushing her. Her time is running out." Spike cast a weary glance back into Buffy's bedroom seeing his only child laying on the bed in acoma. He turned back to Willow. "Willow." He said pleadingly his eyes brimming with tears. She looked at him with a softened expression.

"I know. She'll be fine, she's strong." She assured him. She walked him down to the front room on the main floor. Gathered there were Buffy and Xander. Buffy looked up.

"How is she?"

"Not good." Spike shook his head. Willow looked at all of them taking a seat on the couch with Buffy.

"Angel called he said he's on his way back here he said we have to find the gem and destroy it. That's the only way to help Quinn. From the way she looks we don't have a lot of time. We have to hurry." Buffy turned her gaze down thinking.

"The last place we know it was was down in the sewer where we found her. We should start by going back and looking for it there."

"Do you really think it'll be there?" Spike questioned. Buffy looked at him and shrugged.

"I don't know. But right now it's the only lead we've got. We should start there. Spike take Willow and go back and check it out. Xander will stay here and meet with Angel when he comes back." Buffy got to her feet and walked to the door. Xander spoke up.

"What are you going to do?" He asked. Buffy paused and looked back over her shoulder.

"Go hunting." She walked out the door.


	9. Chapter 9

Q & A 9

Her eyelids fluttered as she tried to wipe away the blurriness. She put her hand to her head trying to stop the throbbing, her efforts were useless. She looked up into the room gathering her senses. It was dark and empty. She threw the covers off of herself and tossed her legs over the bed her feet playing with the plush carpet. She stood and walked to the door pulling it open with little effort. The hallway was as dark as the bedroom and just as empty. "Dad?" She called out. Her words echoed off the walls filling her ears with the sound of her own voice. She walked the length of the hall every room she passed was dark and lifeless. "Dad?" She called louder. No answer came. The whole house was empty everyone was gone. "Where is everyone?" She asked herself. She descended down the staircase with minor caution. She passed into the living room on her way to the kitchen. Static billowed out from the previously off television. Instinctively she covered her ears trying to blot out the noise. "Hello?" She called out.

 _It's going to kill you, you know?_ A wind whipped through the room giving her a chill. She spun around finding no one behind her.

"Who are you? What will kill me?" Quinn called out retreating to the front door.

 _Your empathy, it's going to kill you. Your friends will be too late to save you._ Quinn shivered as the invisible voice answered her questions.

"No. No they won't be they know what they have to do. I won't die!" She called out.

 _Yes. They will find the gem but when they do it will be too late. You'll have died._ It sighed. Quinn could feel panic rising within her. Her life was a horror story hunting and killing demons. As much as it sucked she didn't want to die. She was too young. Angel…She felt a tear slip passed her emotional restraint and roll down her cheek. Her husband she couldn't leave Angel.

"I can't die. I can't. I won't." She yelled. The chuckle of the voice rang through the room.

 _I'm afraid you won't have a choice. But if you wish to live, there is…something you could do._ The cripticness of the message the voice relayed caused Quinn to squint her eyes in suspicion. She crossed her arms.

"And that would be?" She asked. There was silence for a moment and then it spoke again.

 _Turn off your empathy._ It said it as if it was just so obvious a solution. _Give in to the demon and you'll live._ Quinn was reeling.

"Empathy…To feel is what makes us human. If I give into the demon I will become no better than the things I hunt." She called out. With indifference it spoke.

 _But you'll live…_

He watched her eyes roll beneath her eyelids as she lay otherwise motionless in Buffy's bed. He could hear her almost still heart beating quicker than it should be. Something was going on within her. "No, I can't." Her head turned to the side in distress. Spike leaned closer trying to hear. "I can't…Angel…" Her words came in fragments and he struggled to find their meaning. Spike heard the door push open behind him. The scent that wafted to his nose on the currents of air waving in through the room told him it was Willow. She came to stand beside him.

"How is she?" Spike looked to the side and shook his head.

"She speaks now, I guess that's better. But she isn't making any sense." He looked back reaching out to cup his hand around the side of her face. "Buffy back yet?"

"No. Angel should almost be here. If you need to go I can stay with her." Willow offered. Spike shook his head.

"There's still pigs blood in the fridge. I don't want to leave her." Willow nodded her understanding and walked back toward the doorway then she paused.

"She'll come through Spike. She'll be ok." Willow assured. Spike nodded. He kept watch over his daughter. The one thing in his undead existence he loved more than anything. He knew she would come back he could feel it. But how she was coming back was what worried him.

Willow shut the door quietly behind her standing there for a moment. She bit her lip casting a troubled gaze to the side. She felt for Spike she even felt some admiration for him. She couldn't excuse the things he's done, how he hurt Buffy. But she couldn't afford to be a hypocrite after all in his one hundred and some odd years of existing all of his bad deeds didn't almost end the world. It was because of this and that he had actually fought to be on the side of the good guys she was going to help him the only way that she knew how. She strode from the bedroom and into hers taking the book laying on her bed and set it on the floor. She knelt down before the book sitting with her legs crossed. The gem itself was pretty old and Quinn couldn't have been the only person to have been affected by it human or otherwise. Willow stared at the picture of the gem filling her mind with thoughts of only the cats eye. "Of people present and passed, reveal to me what has been unseen." The last thing Willow say before she blacked out was the single lit white candle on the window sill in front of her.

The liquid dropping from the IV into the pool of fluids was deafening. The heart rate monitor beeped with activity. Willow open her eyes slowly looking up at the ceiling. She pushed herself up onto an elbow looking around the room. She found herself in an old hospital bed. She heard the faint sound of sobbing. She looked over finding an older woman probably in her early thirties holding the hand of the girl lying in the hospital bed. "I'm sorry but there is nothing else I can do." The dr said sympathetically. The mother looked up from where she sat.

"I don't understand." The doctor sighed.

"Whatever you said she was exposed to, caused extreme sensory overload. To such an effect that it has shut down just about all of her involuntary and voluntary functions. She can breathe on her own, her kidneys, and lungs are 100% functional on their own. However, she's in acoma. Her brain activity, I'm afraid, well there just isn't any. I'm sorry but I must attend to my other patients." Before Willow could formulate a question she was tugged forward. She left the hospital room to stand into the middle of an older style kitchen. She heard short ragged sobs. Cautiously Willow stepped closer peering around the kitchen island. Sitting on the floor was a older girl probably ten years older than the girl in the hospital bed. The girl clutched a large butcher knife in one hand. Willow gasped and surged forward wanting to stop the girl but ended up falling threw her instead. She fell to the tiled floor on the other side of the girl watching in horror as she drug the large blade harshly across her skin. A huge gash formed where she cut blood forming a line and pooling over dripping down her arm onto the tile. The girl cried harder picking up a wash rag she had had in her lap with it she wiped away the blood. Willow leaned closer her eyes widened. The huge gash had healed into a faint red line. "Accelerated healing…" Willow whispered. She went through several more flashes of more of the same things. Both humans, demons, and hybrids with heightened powers. In one final tug she appeared in Buffy's living room. Willow looked around. "This isn't where I passed out." She said thoughtfully.

"Hello?" Willow spun on her heel seeing Quinn coming down the stairs. A smile sprang over her bright features and she sprang forward.

"You're up! You're ok!" Willow said. _It will kill you, you know…_ Willow stiffened.

"Who's there?" Willow and Quinn mirrored responses. Willow listened as the voice continued in explanation. Staring with her mouth open she turned to Quinn.

"No…No..no no. Quinn you can't!" Willow shouted waving her arms to no avail. "Oh crap! This isn't good. Oh no!" Willow stepped further away from Quinn she needed to get back she needed to warn Spike. "With what is revealed I now see take me back to the place I be." Willow closed her eyes. A gust of sudden wind swirled her hair around her shoulders.

Her eyes fluttered open and she was right where she had passed out. Remembering everything she jumped, a little too quickly to her feet and ran to the back bedroom. She burst through the door forgetting all pleasantries. The look Spike tossed back at her would have at one point scared her but right now there were more urgent matters pressing. "We have a problem."

Her head reeled she fell back a few steps taking a seat on the bottom stair. If she did what the voice suggested if she switched off her empathy the part of her that made her human she would be no better than the ones she hunts. She would be without boundaries. She could cause chaos in the waking hours. She would wreak havoc in the night. How many lives would she ruin before she could turn back? If she could turn back? If she destroyed any she wouldn't want to. Her father went through trials, fought relentlessly for his humanity and she was debating about just turning hers over. Quinn laid her head in her hands feeling tears roll down the sides of her arms. She shook her head. She was one life she wasn't about to save hers if it meant taking the life of another, a dozen, or several hundred. She just wished she could talk to Angel one more time. Wish she could tell her dad the things she'd never gotten the chance to. She rose to her feet having made her choice. "I don't want to die. But I won't allow others to suffer at my hands." She spoke. There was silence in the room and then a loud cackle broke out through the silence. The sound was shrill raising the hairs on the back of her neck.

 _So modest…You have no choice..._ Quinn felt a freezing pressure on her chest as if someone had left their hand in a bucket of ice water and was pressing it to her chest. Chills ran through her body. Her head shot back her eyes widened. Searing pain ripped through her spreading from the center of her chest outward. Through her arms down her spine through her legs. She screamed hoping to relieve whatever it was that was happening to her. The voice that had rang out through the room whispered in her ear. _The destroyer will parish by your hands…_ Laughter rang out Quinn struggled.

"Noooo! Connor!"


End file.
